Ink maintenance system for a printer

ABSTRACT

An ink maintenance system for a printer comprising a first tray having a base and a plurality of side walls, the first tray having a first length and an open top along the length and a second tray having a base and a plurality of side walls, the second tray having a second length and an open top along its length. The system also includes a fan and a filter. To use the system, a print head is positioned in a standby or cleaning position within the printer and ink is ejected from one or more print nozzles into an ink maintenance system within the printer such that the ejected ink is collected in at least one of a catch tray or a filter of the ink maintenance system. The system is then removable from the printer for cleaning.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a Divisional of and claims priority to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 17/004,886, filed Aug. 27, 2020, whichclaims priority to and the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser.No. 62/894,323, filed on Aug. 30, 2019, the contents of which are herebyincorporated in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

Printing with edible ink on food products is done for purposes ofidentifying, marking, decorating or personalizing the food product. Forexample, food products such as cookies can be passed under a print headejecting edible ink on the top surface of the cookie, whether iced orplain, can be printed with a selected design.

Currently, a conveyor belt system or tray is used where one or morecookies are spaced apart in an array on the conveyor belt or tray andpassed below the print head of the printer. Alternatively, labelscomprised of edible paper can be printed with edible ink and applied toa food item with an edible adhesive such as frosting or icing.

Systems of the prior art that are able to print images on an array offood products supported on a conveyor belt or a tray with two or morecolumns of food products requires a larger and more expensive printer onthe scale of a commercial printer. Such systems also usually requiresophisticated sensing systems to locate the position of each food itemfor printing.

SUMMARY

An aspect of the present disclosure relates to an ink maintenance systemfor a printer. The system has a first tray having a base and a pluralityof side walls, the first tray having a first length and an open topalong the length. The system further includes a fan and a filter. Thesystem catches ink from a printer when removably installed within aprinter and does so according to NSF standards for food safety withoutthe use of a foam material, such as a foam based filter. Thus, there isno foam within the first tray.

The first tray is a catch tray for catching ink droplets from one ormore nozzles operably connected to an ink cartridge.

The fan is coupled to a second tray. The second tray has a plurality ofside walls, the second tray having a second length and an open top andan at least substantially open bottom along its length. The filter isalso positioned within the second tray.

The second tray is positioned on top of the first tray and covering atleast a portion of the length of the open top of the first tray.

The second tray houses the filter and the fan and wherein the secondtray at least partially covers the open top of the first tray. The firsttray and second tray are removably coupled to one another to form anassembly for positioning within a printer.

The filter is removable from the second tray for cleaning or replacementof the filter.

The first tray and filter are cleanable for reuse and wherein the firsttray and second tray are constructed from aluminum, stainless steel orcombinations thereof.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a removeable inkmaintenance system for a printer comprising a first tray having a baseand a plurality of side walls, the first tray having a first length andan open top along the length wherein the first tray is removable from aprinter system, cleanable for re-use or a combination thereof; a fan;and a filter, wherein the filter is removable from the ink maintenancesystem, is cleanable for re-use or a combination thereof.

The ink maintenance system is incorporated into a printer system forprinting on a surface of a plurality of food products. The incorporatedsystem includes a printer having a print head and configured to receivean ink cartridge and a receiving arm supported by the printer andextendable and retractable across a path of a print head of the printerto sequentially deliver one of the plurality of food products to aposition below the print head for printing. The system may furthercomprise a delivery tray spaced apart from the printer, and configuredto deliver each one of the plurality of food products to the receivingarm for printing thereon. An ink cartridge maintenance system comprisingan ink catch tray, a filter and a fan wherein the ink cartridgemaintenance system is removably positioned within the printer.

The ink cartridge maintenance system is positioned adjacent a standbyposition of the print head within the printer.

The ink cartridge maintenance system comprises a filter holder forsupporting the filter therein and wherein the fan is coupled to thefilter holder.

The first tray is removable from the printer for cleaning.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method of cleaningprint nozzles in a printer. The nozzles are cleaned by positioning aprint head of the printer in a standby or cleaning position within theprinter; ejecting ink from one or more print nozzles into an inkmaintenance system within the printer such that the ejected ink iscollected in at least one of a catch tray or a filter of the inkmaintenance system; removing the ink maintenance system from the printerfor cleaning of at least one of the catch tray or the filter. The systemis then replaceable into the printer for subsequent use.

When cleaning the ink maintenance system, the system can be furthercleaned by separating the catch tray and filter from one another andremoving the filter from a filter holder.

Yet another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a printingsystem for printing images or content with edible ink on a surface of anedible food product. The edible food product printer of the presentdisclosure allows a user to print edible ink directly on food productsat both low and higher volumes of food products. The ink maintenancesystem described herein can be incorporated therein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ink maintenance system.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the ink maintenance system.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a printer system for the ink maintenancesystem.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the printer system with a cover portionopen.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a hinged printer system in an openposition with the cover portion also open.

FIG. 6 is a top view of the printer system for printing on foodproducts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An ink maintenance system for a printer such as an ink jet printer is anassembly that is removable from the printer and can be disassembled forpurposes of easy cleaning and/or replacement of individual components ofthe maintenance system, such as a filter, as needed.

During printhead maintenance, ink is fired from all the nozzles of theprinthead to keep the nozzles clear for preserving the ink cartridgewhen nozzles are not in use. All of this expelled ink must be capturedso it does not soil areas of the printer that must remain clean yet areareas that are difficult to clean. The maintenance system comprises aremovable tub and a filter that can be easily removed from the tub,manually and thus without the use of tools.

The removable tub is a tray that is removable from the printer andcatches the actual ink droplets without a foam material in the tub. Thefilter is provided in a second, separate tray and the filter isremovable from its tray for cleaning. This arrangement allows the systemto catch the ink without using a foam material for catching the ink.Instead, foam may be incorporated into the filter portion of this systembut is not used in the tub for catching ink. The system described hereinis NSF certified. Foam in the tub would be saturated when wet, allowingbacterial growth. Thus, the removable waste ink system described hereinis washable to further prevent bacterial growth in the system.

The ink maintenance system described herein can be incorporated into anytype of ink-based printing system. However, by way of non-limitingexample, one embodiment described herein incorporates the inkmaintenance system into a food product printing system.

A food product printing system of the present disclosure includes aprinter system for printing an image on a surface of the food product.The print surface may be an actual surface of the food product itself.The printer system comprises a printer having a receiving arm and adelivery tray supported on a base. The system may also be provided witha plurality of different delivery trays, each tray configured forcontinuous delivery of a varied number of food products, and/or for foodproducts of different or specific dimensions.

The receiving arm is configured for receiving a food product from thedelivery tray and moving the food product from the delivery tray intothe printer and into a printing position. The printing position issubstantially below a print head of the printer such that the surface tobe printed on is in the path of the print head. Once the food product isprinted, the receiving arm then returns the printed food product to thedelivery tray. The delivery tray is also configured to move in one ormore directions in order to continuously and automatically deliver aplurality of food items sequentially to the receiving arm.

In one embodiment, the food product printer system is hingedly openablefor access to the print area and thus access to an ink maintenance tray.A hinged connection is provided between an upper printer body and asupport base of the printer system. The print area for the food productsis within a space or cavity formed between the upper print body and thesupport base. For example, the support base has dimensions that providea height to the print area and the cavity therearound within the printersystem. The upper printer body supports many of the operationalcomponents of the printer system such as a print head and the gantryalong which the print head is moveable, supports ink tank installations,and one or more of control and power components to the printer system.However, the support base may also comprise one or more power or controlcomponents for the printer system. One or more hinges or hinged-likeconnection systems are provided along one perimeter edge in the back ofthe printer system to operably connect the upper print body to thesupport base such that the printer is openable from a front area foraccess to the components supported by either the upper print body or thesupport base and for access to the print area and any components thereinincluding removable elements such as the ink maintenance system andtray.

An ink maintenance system 200 of one or more embodiments describedherein can be positioned near the print head storage 16 or standbyposition of any printer system type so that ink cartridge and printnozzle cleaning and maintenance can be carried out between printingprocedures. The ink maintenance system 200 is illustrated generally inFIGS. 1-2 and is incorporated into a printer system in one embodiment inFIGS. 3-6.

The ink maintenance system 200 comprises a catch tray or tub 202 and achannel 204 which couples to the catch tray 202. For example, the catchtray 202 is rectangular in shape having a floor 204 and side walls 206and 208 with end walls 210 and 212. The catch tray 202 has an open topand an interior cavity for collecting ink droplets. An open area 240 ofthe catch tray 202 is configured for receiving the ejected ink duringmaintenance. Thus, the ink generally collects in the tray 202 forsubsequent cleaning of the tray 202 and removal from the system, asdescribed in further detail below.

The channel 214 is also rectangular in shape and having a length that isshorter than the catch tray 202 but a width that substantially matchesthe width of the catch tray 202. The channel 214 has side walls 218 and220 with at least one end wall 222 and an open top with an interiorcavity, where at least a portion of the base or bottom of the channel214 is open for allowing air flow from the tray 202 through a filter 224held therein. The channel 214 also supports a fan 224 therein orotherwise coupled thereto. The fan 224 may be positioned on one end ofthe channel 214 and thus provide a second end wall of sorts. While theembodiment illustrated herein includes a rectangular shaped catch tray202 and corresponding channel 214, other shapes and dimensions arecontemplated and within the scope of this disclosure as vary to fit intodifferent size, style and type printer systems. The channel 214 alsocomprises tabs or other elements 226 outside of the channel 214extending from an open or substantially open bottom which may comprise amesh or slotted opening and serving as mechanisms for coupling thechannel 214 on top of and thus covering at least a portion of the opentop of the catch tray 202. These tabs or other elements 226 may also beused for removably securing the system 200 and/or the channel 214 in aprinter system for secure use.

An interior of the channel 214 is sized to act as a filter holder andthus is configured to hold a filter 228 in combination with the fan 224which directs air flow from the catch tray 202 to the filter 228. Thus,ink ejected into the catch tray 202 that is airborne or otherwise notcollected on a surface of the catch tray 202 is pulling into the filter228 and thus prevented from entering the printer system. Thus, thesystem 200 has components that cooperate for catching and cleaning inkfrom one or more nozzles of a print head of a printer. The fan 224 aidsin directing air flow and controlling the direction of any ink mistgenerated such that ink mist is caught by the filter 228 and/or in or onthe interior surfaces of the catch tray 202. The filter 228 is removablefrom the channel 214 for subsequent cleaning and/or replacement and thecatch tray 202 and channel 214 are removable from the printer system andseparable from one another for cleaning of the interiors of both thetray 202 and the channel 214. The ink maintenance system allows forremoval of ink from the nozzles of a print head to maintain theintegrity of the print nozzles and ink cartridges and to prevent inkfrom depositing on other areas of the printer.

The catch tray 202 and the channel 214 may be comprised of metal such asaluminum or stainless steel, although additional materials able towithstand the environment within a printer and being easily cleanablevia wiping and/or washing such as various hard plastics can be used. Thematerial of the tray 202 and channel 214 should be durable andlightweight.

One embodiment of the printing system 10 is illustrated generally inFIGS. 3-6. The printing system 10 is configured to receive a foodproduct 12 from a delivery tray 22, to print on a surface of the foodproduct 12 and return the food product 12 to the delivery tray 22. Thesystem is also configured to do so automatically and continuously for apre-determined number of food items. The system 10 comprises a printer14 having a print head 16 and nozzles (not shown) wherein the print head16 and nozzles are configured for printing with edible ink. The printer14 also supports an extendable and retractable receiving arm 20.

The receiving arm 20 is operably connected to a power source within theprinter 14. The receiving arm 20 is extendable and retractable withrespect to the position of the path of the print head 16. The receivingarm 20 has a first end and a second opposing end and a substantiallyflat receiving surface extending therebetween. The first end is operablyconnected to a mechanism for retracting and extending the arm 20. Thesecond end and at least a portion of the receiving surface of thereceiving arm 20 are configured for extending outwardly from the printer14. When extended, the receiving arm 20 may receive a food product, holda food product, and/or return a printed food product to the deliverytray 22. The receiving arm also holds or supports the food productwithin the printer 14 and during printing on the surface of the foodproduct 12.

With respect to the printer 14, the print head 16 moves linearly backand forth along a gantry in the manner of a standard inkjet printer forejecting (edible) ink towards the print surface and thus printingpre-selected content on a print surface positioned below the path of theprint head 16. The printer 14 is in communication with a controllerwherein software may be used to control printing of the content on oneor a plurality of food products. In such an embodiment, the inkmaintenance system 200 would be positioned along a side of the printersystem 10 extending along the depth of the printer system 10. The inkmaintenance system 200 may be positioned along a side of the printersystem 10 near the standby location of the print head 16 such that theprint head 16 carrying the nozzles and ink can be cleaned and maintainedat a location spaced apart from the print area 18 of the printer andbetween printing operations.

In further detail, the receiving arm 20 moves in a directionperpendicular to the print head path such that the receiving arm 20extends and retracts across or through the path of the print head 16. Inone embodiment, the receiving arm 20 is a substantially flat,rectangular support plate which extends towards a holder 26 of thedelivery tray 22 in order to engage with and remove the food product 12from the delivery tray 22 as well as to return printed food products tothe delivery tray. A top surface of the receiving arm 20 is a receivingsurface for food product and may be textured or otherwise provided witha surface to increase a co-efficient of friction between the receivingarm 20 and the food product for retaining the food product on the arm20.

The receiving arm extends to receive or return the food product 12 andretracts from the tray 22 into the printer 14 and into a position belowthe print head 16 for printing. Once content is printed on a foodproduct, the receiving arm 20 then extends to return the food product 12back to the delivery tray 22. The delivery tray 22 then advances toprovide a second unprinted food product 12 to the receiving arm 20. Thereceiving arm 20 is also configured for vertical movement such that thereceiving surface of the receiving arm 20 is movable between twopositions, a raised and a lowered position, where these positions allowthe receiving arm 20 to retrieve and return food products 12 withrespect to the delivery tray 22, and may allow for advancing of thedelivery tray 22 when the receiving arm 20 is extended. Once loaded, thereceiving arm 20 is then retracted to the printing position with thefood product 12 thereon. This process continues on continuously andautomatically per a pre-determined amount of food products are printed.It is also contemplated that the delivery tray may also be raised orlowered in order to allow for the delivery tray 22 to advance to asubsequent holder 26 or opening 28 on the delivery tray 22 forautomatically delivering, receiving and thus printing on a plurality offood items.

Positioned adjacent or near the printing system is a base 40 forproviding power and controlling advancement and vertical positioning ofthe delivery tray 22. The delivery tray 22 moves about an operableconnection with a base 40. The delivery tray 22 may rotate or advance ina linear manner, or other directional movement which advances thedelivery tray from one opening 26 to the next adjacent opening 28. Inone non-limiting embodiment, as illustrated, the delivery tray 22rotates about the operable connection with the base 40.

In embodiments where the printer system 10 is a hinged printed system 10or otherwise configured for hingedly opening to the print area, themaintenance system 200 is positioned in a space 152 between a upperprinter body 150 and a support base 160 of the printer system 10, butthe maintenance system 200 may be supported on the upper print body 150near the position of the carriage for the ink tanks when the printer isnot in use or is in a standby mode for example. This area is generallyadjacent to but spaced apart from the print area 18. As the support base160 has dimensions that provide a height to the print area allowing thefood products to be delivered from outside of the printer system 10 intothe cavity 152 and below the print head 16 within the print area 18 inan unobstructed manner wherein the upper printer body 150 supports theprint head there above. While, the upper printer body 152 supports manyof the operational components of the printer system such as a print headand the gantry along which the print head is moveable, supports ink tankinstallations, and one or more of control and power components to theprinter system, and optionally the ink maintenance system 200 describedherein.

The maintenance tray 210 and maintenance catch tray 202 are removablyconnectable to the upper printer body 152 by way of clips, channels orother mating connectors which allow for securing the maintenance systemcatch tray 202 and channel 214 in the printer system 10 in a manner thatis easily removable for cleaning. System 200 is positioned with an openend 240 of the catch tray 202 spaced apart from the channel 214 andfilter 228 to be positioned for receiving an ink spray from the printhead. That is, the open end of the tray 202 is positioned below astandby or maintenance location or position of the print head such thatink is ejected away from the print area. The filter 228 then collectsink mist or airborne ink particles not collected on the surfaces insidethe catch tray 202 and in conjunction with the fan 224 the airborneparticles are then caught in the filter and prevented from entering theprinter system.

To remove ink from cleaning or changing the ink cartridges or otherspent ink and clean the maintenance system 200 for further uses, theprinter system 10 is opened about a hinged connection 170 to expose thecavity 152 for easy removal and replacement of the maintenance tray 210.The maintenance system 200 is also configured for disassembly forpurposes of cleaning the individual components 202, 224 of themaintenance system 200 including cleaning or replacing the filter.

In the illustrated embodiments the food product is a dessert item suchas a cookie. However, while examples of food items include variousshapes, sizes, and types of cookies, the food items that can be printedwith this system are not so limited. Frosting sheets, rice paper, bakerygoods having at least one substantially flat surface for printing animage thereon, and other food items may be printed using this system.The delivery tray may be configured with positioning mechanisms whichare tailored to the specific shape, size, thickness, type etc. of foodproduct to be printed and thus, the system may be provided as a kitincluding the printer described herein including receiving arm and oneor more delivery trays of various sizes, dimensions and for delivery ofone or more different food products or food products having differentdimensions.

The system is further configured with one or more control boards incommunication with a computer or controller for configuring andinitiating the printing process. However, the delivery tray isconfigured with one or more positioning mechanisms such that incombination with the receiving arm as a food product is delivered to theprinter and positioned below the print head, the need for a sensingsystem or series of sensors for detecting the position of the foodproduct is eliminated. A sensor may be utilizing in the printer forconfirming the presence of the food product in the printer for printing.The sensors may be positioned on the print head and used to detect onlythe presence of the substrate for printing. The system is a fixed spotprinting system so there is no need for scanning for position of theprint surface. The system also allows for loading of unprinted foodproducts and unloading of printed food products during printing orotherwise “on the fly.” The control board or boards allow for thedelivery of a first food product, printing of the first food product,return of the first food product, advancing of the delivery tray toprovide a second food product for delivery, delivery of the second foodproduct, printing of the second food product, return of the second foodproduct to the delivery tray and advancing for delivery of one or moresubsequent food products for printing and return. Thus, the systemallows for the automatic delivery, printing on and return of a pluralityof food products.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference topreferred embodiments, workers skilled in the art will recognize thatchanges may be made in form and detail without departing from the spiritand scope of the disclosure.

1. An ink maintenance system for a printer comprising: a first trayhaving a base and a plurality of side walls, the first tray having afirst length and an open top along the length; a fan; and a filter,wherein the ink maintenance system captures ink from a printer systemand wherein the ink maintenance system do so without the use of a foamcomponent for receiving ink.
 2. The system of claim 1 wherein the firsttray is a catch tray for catching ink droplets from one or more nozzlesoperably connected to an ink cartridge.
 3. The system of claim 1 whereinthe fan is coupled to a second tray.
 4. The system of claim 1 whereinthe filter is positioned within a second tray.
 5. The system of claim 3wherein the second tray is positioned on top of the first tray andcovering at least a portion of the length of the open top of the firsttray.
 6. The system of claim 2 wherein the second tray houses the filterand the fan and wherein the second tray at least partially covers theopen top of the first tray.
 7. The system of claim 6 wherein the secondtray has an open bottom such that an air flow is directed from a frontof the first tray through the bottom of the second tray and into thefilter therein.
 8. The system of claim 6 wherein the first tray andsecond tray are removable coupled to one another to form an assembly forpositioning within a printer.
 9. The system of claim 4 wherein thefilter is removable from the second tray for cleaning or replacement ofthe filter.
 10. A method of cleaning print nozzles in a printercomprising: positioning a print head of the printer in a standby orcleaning position within the printer; ejecting ink from one or moreprint nozzles into an ink maintenance system within the printer suchthat the ejected ink is collected in at least one of a catch tray or afilter of the ink maintenance system; removing the ink maintenancesystem from the printer for cleaning of at least one of the catch trayor the filter; and replacing the ink maintenance system in the printer.11. The method of claim 10 and further comprising disassembling the inkmaintenance system by separating the catch tray and filter from oneanother and removing the filter from a filter holder.
 12. The method ofclaim 10 and directing an air flow from the catch tray to the filter forcollecting airborne ink in the filter.